Former Ohio, Wis. nuke workers may be eligible for benefits

Former workers of nuclear weapons facilities in Wisconsin and Ohio may be eligible for compensation and medical benefits under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act administered by the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Division of Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation. Survivors of qualified workers also may be entitled to benefits.

The DOL is asking all those who worked at six facilities in Wisconsin and 25 in Ohio during a period of covered employment to call 866-363-6993 visit the Division of Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation website at www.dol.gov/owcp/energy for information.

The Wisconsin facilities are: Ladish Co. in Cudahy, LaCrosse Boiling Water Reactor in LaCrosse, Allis-Chalmers Co. (also known as Hawley Plant) in West Allis, Besley-Wells in South Beloit, and A.O. Smith Corp. and General Electric X-Ray Division in Milwaukee.

On July 31, 2001, the Labor Department began administering Part B of the EEOICPA. Part B covers current and former workers who have been diagnosed with cancer, beryllium disease or silicosis, and whose illness was caused by exposure to radiation, beryllium or silica while working directly for the U.S. Department of Energy, that department’s contractors or subcontractors, a designated Atomic Weapons Employer or a beryllium vendor. Individuals or their survivors found eligible under Part B may receive a lump sum compensation payment of $150,000 and medical expenses for their covered conditions. Part E, created by an amendment to the EEOICPA on Oct. 28, 2004, and also administered by the Labor Department, provides federal compensation and medical benefits to DOE contractors and subcontractors who worked at covered facilities during a covered time period and sustained an illness as a result of exposure to toxic substances.

In support of the Labor Department’s implementation of the EEOICPA, DOE maintains a list of covered facilities under the act, which is periodically updated and published in the Federal Register. DOE also maintains a searchable covered facility database, which contains additional information pertaining to each of the facilities, including years of covered activity and an overview of the type of work performed. The database can be accessed online at www.hss.doe.gov/healthsafety/fwsp/advocacy/faclist/findfacility.cfm.

It is the Labor Department’s goal to disseminate information concerning EEOICPA benefits to potentially eligible claimants across the country. To aid in this effort, the department maintains 11 resource centers nationwide to provide in-person and telephone-based assistance to individuals regardless of where they live. To date, the department has delivered more than $6.4 million in EEOICPA compensation and medical benefits to eligible individuals living in Wisconsin, and more than $7.4 billion nationwide.

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